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About this blog: I am a perpetually hungry twenty-something journalist, born and raised in Menlo Park and currently working at the Palo Alto Weekly as education and youth staff writer. I graduated from USC with a major in Spanish and a minor in jo... (More)

About this blog: I am a perpetually hungry twenty-something journalist, born and raised in Menlo Park and currently working at the Palo Alto Weekly as education and youth staff writer. I graduated from USC with a major in Spanish and a minor in journalism. Though my first love is journalism, food is a close second. I am constantly on the lookout for new restaurants to try, building an ever-expanding "to eat" list. As a journalist, I'm always trolling news sources and social media websites with an eye for local food news, from restaurant openings and closings to emerging food trends. When I was a teenager growing up in Menlo Park, I always drove up to the city on weekends with the singular purpose of finding a better meal than I could at home. But in the past year or so, the Peninsula's food culture has been totally transformed, with many new restaurants opening and a continuous stream of San Francisco restaurants coming south to open Peninsula outposts. Don't navigate this food boom hungry and alone! Feed me your tips on new chefs and eats and together we'll share them with the broader community. (Hide)

Redwood City's Vesta named Michelin Bib Gourmand

Uploaded: Oct 5, 2017

Redwood City Italian eatery Vesta is the only Midpeninsula restaurant that retained its status in the Michelin guide's latest Bay Area Bib Gourmand list, which honors places that serve high-quality food at an affordable price.

The sausage and honey pizza at Vesta in Redwood City. Photo by Veronica Weber/Palo Alto Weekly.

The 2018 list, released Thursday, only includes four new restaurants in Oakland, San Mateo, Marin and Millbrae. A total of 67 restaurants are highlighted throughout the Bay Area.

Bib Gourmand restaurants are selected by anonymous Michelin food inspectors "who choose restaurants serving high quality food on their menus and make it possible to order two courses and a glass of wine or dessert for $40 or less (tax and gratuity not included)," a press release states. "These selections are very often the same restaurants that the Michelin food inspectors frequent when they are off the clock."

Vesta -- operated by Peter and Courtney Borrone, son and daughter-in-law of the owners of Menlo Park's Cafe Borrone -- opened on Broadway Street in 2012. It has been a Bib Gourmand restaurant for several years in a row.

Disappointed that Zola was dropped. I've dined there and found the food marvelous and service excellent. Perhaps it didn't meet the Bib Gourmand criteria - too expensive? Would like to know .. From what I know Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurants are ones where you can get two courses and a glass of wine or a dessert for $40 or less, excluding tax and tip.

Posted by charles reilly,
a resident of another community,
on Oct 7, 2017 at 5:05 am

Thank you, Elena, for mentioning a Redwood City establishment. We're rockin' up here withs TONS of great mid-priced places. It's great that we can simply walk along Broadway and choose one. Also, the restaurants that open mostly tend to stay in business. There is not a "here today gone tomorrow" atmosphere that I find distracting. We aren't picky eaters, don't need a gourmet experience; our middle-class palettes are very happy here.

Posted by Gebhard,
a resident of Mountain View,
on Oct 7, 2017 at 8:39 pm

A well deserved award. I work in Redwood City and have been going to Vesta since they opened. Always great food, friendly service, good prices. A truly wonderful restaurant. Congratulations to the whole team at Vesta that makes it happen!

Posted by Reality check,
a resident of Mountain View,
on Oct 10, 2017 at 11:35 am

Keep in mind once again that Michelin's "Bib Gourmand list" is separate from its category of "budget" restaurants (the Guide has included a separate "under $25" list in recent years, but that is not part of Michelin's annual pre-release publicity program that prompted this and other journalistic references to Bib Gourmand). "Bib Gourmand" is a list of Michelin inspectors' personal favorites within a price range somewhat above the "budget" category. The distinction between the two is made very clear in the actual book.

Posted by cook,
a resident of Old Mountain View,
on Oct 11, 2017 at 8:55 pm

@ Eater Reader:

Tip should only be calculated on food price, not including sales tax. While many restaurants have suggested tips based on including sales tax for the calculations in the past, I have been noticing that many in the last couple of months have changed and now only make the percentage suggestions on the food price excluding sales tax.

Posted by tip-poll,
a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood,
on Oct 11, 2017 at 10:43 pm

Didn't mean to derail the thread, but "tax and gratuity not included" omits a significant amount. I doubt the tip-consensus is still 15% around here, except for maybe a quick breakfast served at the counter. Don't know what the servers see or expect. Perhaps they are happier with a pleasant low-maintenance customer than they would be with a high-tipping boor. Compensation is a touchy subject.

Posted by Lawman,
a resident of Menlo Park,
on Oct 12, 2017 at 6:42 pm

Neither of the two dropped restaurants meet the criterion of less than $40 for 2 courses plus glass of wine or dessert. There is another (unlikely) possibility: one or both of them has been elevated to "star" status. If RWC commercial rents do not go the Palo Alto way, there is a good chance Vesta will maintain its status and maybe even more RWC restaurants will be awarded bibs.